Tuesday, January 09, 2007

Isaiah

Isaiah (hebrew ישׁעיהו yeshayahu) is a book of the Jewish Hebrew bible as well as the Christian Old Testament, containing prophecies attributed to Isaiah. This book is often seen by scholars as being divided into at least two sections. The first section, consisting of chapters 1-39, is generally accepted as being written by the prophet Isaiah of Jerusalem, or by his followers who took down his words.

Isaiah (יְשַׁעְיָהוּ "Salvation of/is the Lord") was the son of Amoz, and commonly considered the author of the Book of Isaiah.

Isaiah prophesied during the reigns of four kings -- Uzziah (Azariah), Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah. Legend has it that he was martyred during the reign of Manasseh, who came to the throne in 687 BCE. That he is described as having ready access to the kings would suggest an aristocratic origin.

This was the time of the divided kingdom, with Israel in the north and Judah in the south.